Bureau of the World Conference on Constitutional Justice supported the resolution proposed by the Constitutional Court of Latvia on restoring the international legal order
On 15th and 16th March, a delegation of the Latvian Constitutional Court participated in the 138th Plenary Session of the European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission) and the 21st meeting of the Bureau of the World Conference on Constitutional Justice, in which the resolution proposed by the Latvian Constitutional Court on restoring the international legal order was approved.
“We live in times when disputes between states on various continents, unfortunately, are resolved not through the authority of international law but through aggression, the power of arms and undemocratic means of influence. Thus, currently, the international legal order is under threat, and it is the obligation of the family of constitutional courts of the entire world to highlight the need for restoring it and holding liable those who violate international law. The Constitutional Court of the Republic of Latvia, representing the interests of all European constitutional courts, submitted, already a year ago, a resolution for examination at the meeting of the executive body or the Bureau of the World Conference on Constitutional Justice. Regretfully, last year we did not succeed in convincing the representatives of the constitutional courts from some other continents to support the inclusion of the resolution on the agenda. However, this year during constructive discussions members of the Bureau agreed that military conflicts in the world and diminished protection of human rights in these zones of conflict demand that also such an apolitical organisation as the World Conference on Constitutional Justice express its active stance. It is within our power to achieve that the global order is determined by law and not by weapons,” President of the Constitutional Court Aldis Laviņš underscored.
First of all, at the plenary session of the Venice Commission, attended, alongside the President of the Constitutional Court, by judge Artūrs Kučs, issues related to the application of amnesty, judges’ ethics, protection of national sovereignty, as well as other topical issues in the constitutional law of the member states were discussed. At the plenary session, Aldis Laviņš reported, on behalf of all European constitutional courts, on the development of the protection of fundamental rights in the region, as well as on topical matters related to the international conferences organized by the Constitutional Court and multilateral cooperation, emphasising, in particular, the aspect of peace and national security for states.
Whereas at the meeting of the Bureau of the World Conference on Constitutional Justice, the Constitutional Court was represented by President Aldis Laviņš, Vice-president Irēna Kucina and Advisor Andrejs Stupins-Jēgers. A unanimous decision was adopted at the meeting to support the resolution proposed by the Constitutional Court of Latvia and to proceed with is examination at the General Assembly of the organisation. Inter alia, the proposed draft amendments to the Statute submitted by the Constitutional Court of Lithuania were also approved; these envisage not only the possibility of suspending a court’s membership in the organisation but also of fully terminating such a court if it has acted contrary to the fundamental principles of the organisation. Previously, the need for such amendments was discussed at the V Congress of the Conference during which the Latvian Constitutional Court strongly supported the amendments proposed by the Lithuanian Constitutional Court. The initial aim of the amendments was to exclude the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation from the organisation, as this Court shortly before the Congress had approved the annexation of Ukrainian territories. During the Congress of 2022, Russia left the Conference.
At the conclusion of the Bureau’s meeting a decision was taken to approve the main topic for the next Congress of the Conference, i.e., “Human Rights of Future Generations”. The Congress will be held by the Constitutional Tribunal of Spain in October 2025.
The World Conference on Constitutional Justice is a strategically significant forum for promoting dialogue among constitutional courts worldwide. It brings together more than 100 constitutional courts, councils and supreme courts from Europe, Americas, Africa, Asia, Australia, and Oceania. The principal aim of the organisation is ensuring justice by addressing issues of constitutional review, democratic development and the protection of fundamental rights in countries around the world. The World Conference is the highest-level platform in the field of constitutional justice. At the General Assembly on 6 October 2022 the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Latvia was confirmed as a member of the Bureau, the executive body of the World Conference on Constitutional Justice, where it represents all European constitutional courts.
